SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s central bank chief said on Wednesday that it will take into account the U.S. Federal Reserve’s emergency interest rate cut as it conducts monetary policy.
Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol, however, stressed the limits of monetary policy and called for a more targeted measures from the government to deal with the outbreak of coronavirus.
“(The Bank) will closely monitor markets and focus on stabilizing markets,” Lee said in an urgently scheduled policy meeting in Seoul.
The BOK last week surprised markets by keeping its base rate unchanged at 1.25% even as it downgraded the growth outlook amid mounting fears the outbreak could derail Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
(This story corrects to remove extra word in paragraph 4)
(Reporting by Cynthia Kim; Editing by Kim Coghill)
